Peering into the refrigerator for a quick Sunday evening supper, I spied the sack from Brady’s Oysters containing leftover smoked fish from a recent trip to the coast.
That and the enameled casserole containing the remnants of the spot prawn dinner from the evening before set the theme, and the combining of bits, plus a pot of salted water and a fistful of dried spaghetti, resulted in a tasty second act for this fine slate of Northwest ingredients.
Ingredients
Cooking oil
Scallions
Mushrooms
Smoked fish
Fresh lemon juice and zest
Kalamata olives
Cherry tomatoes
Parmesan Cheese
Coarse salt and fresh cracked black pepper
Dried pasta noodles
Sauté scallions and mushrooms in oil of your choice on medium high heat, cooking until mixture begins to caramelize.
Add smoked fish (my leftovers included smoked crab, salmon, oyster and spot prawn) and continue pan-cooking until ingredients meld into an amazingly aromatic, well-cooked (not overcooked) mixture.
Add zest and juice of fresh lemon, as much or little as you like.
Sprinkle a little grated (not powdered) parmesan cheese over the mixture, enough to add a zing of flavor, but not enough to make the dish heavy or gloopy.
Other ingredients I had on hand took my recipe up a notch: a generous sprinkle of kalamata olives and juice and a container of cherry tomatoes. I added the olives first to impart more flavor and a little oil to the brew. The tomatoes were the very last thing I added to my pan before lowering the heat and covering, cooking it all on low a few more minutes until the tomatoes turn delectably soft and warm through and through.
Toss with cooked pasta and more parmesan, cracked black pepper, and an optional drizzle of olive oil. Serve in a bowl and eat cross-legged on the couch, absorbing the transformative and tasty nourishment of fish redux.